The Atlanta constitution. [volume] (Atlanta, Ga.) 1885-19??, 1887-11-29
KEBLER'S CRIMES
A Man Who Concluded That His
Time Had Come.
MOST NOTABLE FoRGER OF THE AGE

| CINCINNATI, November 27.-When Charles
A. Kebler, promising young attorney highly
connected, inheriting a large and lucrative
clientage from lis father, had forged the names
OF bogus parties to bogus mortgage deeds, had
used the money intrusted to him for invest
ment in speculation, hoping each day to re-
trieve the loss-when his many crimes were
fast finding him out, he retired to his luxu-
riously-furnished room in his $4,000 Mount
Auburn home, swallowed glass of cyanide of
potassium Wednesday morning, and left a
piece of paper in his breast in which were the
simple words:
The time has come.
Around his neck was the pearl necklace OF
his devoted wife, who had died a few months
since. The coroner jumped to the conclusion
that Keblers suicide was caused by devotion
to her memory. 1t now transpires that for
years Kebler has led double life as false as
that Of Jim the Penman, or Fauntleroy, the
London forger. A graduate of Ann Arbor
and Cambridge law schools, he succeeded to
his fathers practice and formed partnership
with two wealthy young men-Boelker and
Jelke. His business was largely in con-
nection with estates and trust funds. In time
large sums of money uninvested were left in his
hands. The temptation proved too much for
him. In order to maintain q mode of life be-
you'd his means, one OF the opponents of which
was the really palacial home III which Wednes-
day morning last he took his life, he availcd
himself of these funds Having inherited
personally nothing from his father, although
he became the custodian of the estate, and his
lovely wife having brought him but little, he,
nevertheless, lived eXtravagantly, his deceived
family believing his means came legitimately
from the practice OF his profession, in which he
was industrious and reasonably successful
The time soon came, of course, when the
illegitimate use of trust funds brought about
the inevitable mbarraSsment. The
method resorted to to relieve the pressure was
bold almost beyond parallel in the history of
crime. There are instances in the transactions
of the deceased attorney and counselor where
every paper in connection with a complicated
and important transfer of moneys and prop-
critics was forged. Money would be left, for
instance, bya client who had absolute conf
dence and faith in Mr. Kebler as his or her at
torney, for investment on mortgage. In one
case $4,000 is said to have been left in this
way. In few days the customer was found.
A mortgage was delivered to the lender, fully
executed, and plcdging real or imaginary real
estate, every signature to which, though in
Guiding that of the mortgager, witness, and
notary, was fraudulent
Thus forgery was piled upon forgery Dis
c'very, of course, followed, and confession
was necessary. When, Wednesday morning
last, Mr.. Abbott Kebler called upon his
brother, in pursuance of an appointment
made at the close of business conference the
previous day it was probably to demand a full
Ter explanation than had yet been made of the
lnroadS that had been found to have been
made upon the estate of the father of the sui
eide. 1t will be remembered that the message
came to Mr.. Abbott Kebler that 'Mr. Charles
will be down in few minutes - and that,
when impatient at his brothers. delay, Mr..
Abbott Kebler assembled to his chamber and
found that the fatal draught had been taken
1t has not been stated until now, however, that
the dead man had hastily scrubbed upon a
piece of paper the last lines written on earth
and pointing by its breyity to an inference that
the fatal deed was suddenly resolved upon, the
simple words: "The time has Gomez
His liabilities will aggregate more than
100000, and his assets will not reach one
third of this sum. The heaviest losers are his
mother and brothers, whose losses aggregate
$4,000. His partner, Mr.. Jelke, loses $4,000.
daughter of the venerable DR.. A. L. Norton,
had 50, O00 in his hands. Mrs. Curtiss, an heir
of the Brown estate, living with Thomas
II. HINT, at Valley Junction, loses on
fraudulent mortgages, $4,000 AS a spec
linen of his business methods, q German
died here, leaving $500 in bonds 1t was
in the coroner's hands. He charged the
widow in Germany $500 for receipting for the
coroner for it and transmitting it to Europe
He was recently attorney for George III. Duck
worth in his unsuccessful suit to remove the
board of directors of the Cincinnati, Hamilton
and Dayton and to place the road in the hands
of o receiver. Ex-Congressman Ike Jordan,
Kebler's associate. had noticed his absent
nl1lueuneSS, out ATTRIBUTED IL TO MS late affIc
ton. L. W. Kttridge, the attorney, will
probably have the settlement of the estate.
Kebler has been a morphine-eater for
some time and has lately complained of IN
somnia. e. l.. Harper of the Fidelity bank,
said Kebler had dealt largely with him, but
did not state the details Of any of the trans
actions.
Among the assets of the deceaseds estate:
will be the handsome house which he built c5n
the Reading road near Oak street, and which
was finished about year ago. He Aad
scarcely occupied it with his wife and Awe
sons, before Mrs. Kebler-no story of hisi de-
votion to whom has been eXaggerated-Hied
leaving him, there is little doubt, q broken
hearted man, but with an additional burden
upon him such as no one surmised and which
few men could have borne. This property is
one of the most beautiful structures aJAong all
the famous suburban homes of Cincinnati
There can be but little question that it was
love for the woman he mourned so sincerely
and ambition to place her in home like this
that led to the earlier missteps of the uhfortu-
nate man.
Later developments in the Kebler case show
that he forged a mortgage of $1,000 on Mrs.
Herr, widow of the West End also that he
forged mortgage on e. Molten, of Cumnins-
vile, for 81 500, and sold it to Ferd Jelke, a
commission merchant, and gave seven promis-
sorry notes, two of which have been paid and
five are due. The names of the mortgagor,
two Witnesses the notary public and county
recorder are all now known to be forged. 1t
is understood that a confession has been made
to Il. w Kittredge, but he refused to divulge
until after the funeral